"Where do I begin?"

I spent a tedious two months on Osterley 1 ward, I almost felt like part of the furniture !! Before I begin my rant, let me just say that the Sister is an absolute credit to the hospital and the Sister really does go above and beyond as do some other staff. Health care assistants are literally angels on Earth. If you are ever admitted to Osterley and these people are in shift, be very honoured. Now, for my rant. Patients were left in soiled beds for ages, making the bay's absolutely stink. Staff did nothing when patients wailed out in the night, keeping everyone awake. I had to help an elderly lady several times to eat her food and drink water as no one came to help for ages. An elderly patient was called a liar when she asked for help to shuffle up in the bed, the healthcare assistant told her that she could do it herself. Patients had to wait ages and felt like a burden when they pressed the call bell. I witnessed some appalling things. My picc line got pulled out 5cm and when I told nurse they told me to just go and have a nice day. I bumped into the radiologist who was absolutely appalled at the state. Staff talked about one another, you could feel the tension in the air and it was horrible. Not a nice place to stay, I was eventually allowed out in the day and would cry my eyes out when I had to go back, my dad had to literally drag me back. No regard for patients sleeping, staff would talk and laugh loudly at night with each other.

Responses

We are sorry to read about your experiences. Your comments have been passed on to the relevant teams. We would encourage you to get in touch via our PALS team so that we can investigate the issues you have raised and respond to you fully. Contact pals.service@wmuh.nhs.uk / 020 8321 6261.